Fluffy Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls

Fluffy, easy sourdough cinnamon rolls, leavened with sourdough starter. They're topped with a tangy cream cheese frosting.

The dough in this sourdough cinnamon roll recipe is lightly enriched with eggs and butter. This recipe is a bit more involved than your traditional cinnamon buns, but it's well worth it.

The slightly tangy flavor from the sourdough is subtle but noticeable in a great way! These are the best cinnamon rolls, full of flavor, and can be made by hand or in a stand mixer.

The dough

The dough for these cinnamon rolls is similar to a brioche dough but slightly less enriched. This makes it easier to work by hand than with a buttery brioche. There is still the addition of eggs and butter for flavor, just not quite the same amounts.

Here is a recipe for sourdough brioche cinnamon rolls if you're after an extra enriched dough (or these brioche cinnamon rolls without sourdough!)

Stiff sourdough starter

You'll need an active sourdough starter for this recipe, not sourdough discard. The starter will be fed as a stiff starter.

Stiffer starters are slower to rise than those with higher hydration. They undertake a slow but steady growth, with less risk of peaking too early.

The sourdough dough needs extra time to rise, so the wild yeast can get to work. Adding all the extra fat to the dough can slow things down so a stiff active starter helps bring some strength to the rise. 

The starter is fed (in weight) overnight. 1 part starter, 2 parts flour, and 1 part water. It makes a stiff dough ball. In the morning it will have more than doubled and will be ready to use.

If you haven't got your own sourdough starter yet, learn how to create a starter!

Equipment

For the easiest results, use a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. The dough is relatively sticky especially when the butter is worked in. This extra fat in the dough can make gluten development quite slow. That being said, it's definitely possible to work these by hand. Just be prepared to use a little elbow grease!

You'll also need a 9x13-inch baking pan or a 12-inch cast-iron skillet to bake the homemade cinnamon rolls in.

Ingredients

The ingredient amounts are listed in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here is just a rundown of what you will need with a little extra information.

The buns and cinnamon filling

• All-purpose flour. This recipe works well with a strong all-purpose flour with around 11-12% protein. You can also use bread flour.
• Sourdough starter
• Granulated sugar
• Large eggs
• Milk
• Unsalted butter. You can use salted if that's all you've got, just reduce the amount of salt a little in the rest of the recipe.
• Salt
• Cinnamon
• Brown sugar

The frosting

• Cream cheese
• Powdered sugar
• Vanilla extract or paste
• Milk

Baker's schedule

Here is a rough outline of the baker’s schedule so you can get an idea of the timings.

The evening before

Feed the stiff starter

Day 1

9 am - Mix the dough

9:30 am - Let it rise in a warm spot until bulked out by half (approx 4 hours depending on temperature)

1:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Refrigerate the dough

8:30 pm - Shape the sourdough cinnamon rolls and let them have their second rise overnight at room temperature

Day 2

9 am - The next morning bake the sourdough cinnamon rolls and frost them

Alternate timings

The above schedule is for overnight sourdough cinnamon rolls, where the rolls will proof and rise overnight. If you would rather proof them during the day and bake them in the evening, you can change the timings.

After mixing the dough on day 1 and giving it the initial dough rise, it can be placed in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours before shaping.  This can give more flexibility in the timings but do bear in mind that the longer the fridge proof, the more the sourdough tang will come through.

If not left to rise overnight as in the example above, the shaped sourdough rolls will take around 8 hours to rise the next day in a warm spot.

Method

Mix together 30g starter with 60g flour and 30g water. Knead it for a minute or two into a stiff dough ball.

Place this into a lightly oiled jar. Brush the top of the ball dough with a little water (so it doesn't dry out too much overnight). Loosely cover with a lid and leave it to rise for 8-12 hours until more than doubled.

The following day

Mixing in a mixer

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, add the flour, sugar, salt, eggs, milk, and all the stiff starter.

• Turn the mixer on low and combine until it forms a thick but slightly sticky dough. Mix this dough on medium-low speed for around 5 minutes to begin developing the gluten. 
• To the bowl of your stand mixer, add the softened butter, a little bit at a time. Incorporate each cube before the next addition.

• Turn the mixer on medium speed and keep it mixing for around 15-20 minutes until the sticky and soft dough starts to strengthen and come together and pull away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.
• Once finished mixing, leave the dough to rest for a few minutes then grab a piece and see if you can stretch it out really thin so it’s almost see-through, without it tearing. This is called the 'window pane' effect and shows proper gluten development. 

Mixing by hand

• In a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, salt, eggs, milk, and the ripe sourdough starter. Use a fork or wooden spoon to mix it into a shaggy dough. Tip the dough onto a floured work surface and knead it for 5 minutes to begin developing the gluten. 
• Begin to knead in the butter, a few cubes at a time. The butter is going to make the dough very sticky. Slap and fold the dough on the bench to create strength. Slap it down, and fold it over.
• Once all the butter has been incorporated, slap and fold for a minute or so more, then leave the dough to rest for 5-10 minutes then come back to it. Keep slapping and folding for 10 minutes or more until you feel and see the dough become strong and glossy.
• Use a bench scraper to gather up any loose pieces of dough. If at any point you need another break, take it! It's easier coming back to it with clean hands, and the gluten in the dough does well with rest.

Bulk ferment

Once the dough is kneaded, shape it into a smooth ball and place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a damp tea towel, compostable plastic wrap, or lid. Place the dough in a warm place, ideally around 25°C / 76°F, and let it rise.

It won’t double but should bulk out by at least 50%. This will take around 4-6 hours, but the rise time will change depending on temperature. You can create a warm and humid proofing spot by placing a large mug of boiled water in a turned-off oven and putting the dough in there. Replace the water with freshly boiled water if it cools down.

Once risen, place the dough in the fridge until you’re ready to shape in the evening. Alternatively, the dough can stay in the fridge overnight and shaping can be done in the morning.

Shaping

• Remove the cold dough from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.
• Pull it from the bowl onto a floured surface. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a 12x18 inch (30x45cm) long rectangle. 
• Spread melted butter over the dough and sprinkle cinnamon sugar over the butter.
• Tightly roll up the dough from the long side to form a 45cm/18-inch long roll. Slice the log into 12 equal pieces using unflavored dental floss or a serrated knife.

Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish and place the rolls in it.

Cover them with some compostable plastic wrap or beeswax wrap to stop the top of the dough from drying out. Let the unbaked rolls have their final rise overnight until double in size. 

The next morning

In the morning they can be baked. If you’re not baking them right away, place the proofed rolls in the fridge to slow any further rise but don’t hold off from baking too long or they may over-proof and deflate. 

Frosting

In a small bowl beat the cream cheese in a mixer until smooth and creamy. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk. Beat it together until creamy. Spread the frosting over the still-warm rolls with an offset spatula.

Serving and storing